Four charged in steroid case

By Curt Anderson
The Associated Press

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WASHINGTON — Barry Bonds' personal trainer and a coach for some of the top track stars were among four people charged yesterday with running a steroid-distribution ring that provided performance-enhancing drugs to dozens of athletes.

A 42-count indictment returned by a grand jury in San Francisco described in detail how a nutritional-supplements lab — Bay Area Lab Cooperative or BALCO — allegedly provided the drugs from December 2001 to September 2003 to major-league baseball and NFL players, Olympics-caliber track stars and bodybuilders.

No sports figures were named, but Attorney General John Ashcroft left open the possibility some could be charged later.

The indictment names Bonds' trainer, Greg F. Anderson, 37, and Remi Korchemny, 71, a top track coach whose roster includes Kelli White, a sprinter facing forfeiture of world-championship gold medals after testing positive for a banned stimulant.

"I am saddened by the news of the indictment against my trainer and friend," Bonds said in a statement. "I don't know the state of the evidence and it would be inappropriate to comment on this matter."

Also named are Victor Conte Jr., 53, president and chief executive officer of BALCO, and its vice president, James J. Valente, 49.

Ashcroft said the public's confidence in athletes and their sports has been undermined by questions about how some players attained their greatness.

"Illegal steroid use calls into question not only the integrity of the athletes who use them, but also the integrity of the sports that those athletes play," he said. "Steroids are bad for sports, they're bad for players, they're bad for young people who hold athletes up as role models."

Terry Madden, chief executive officer of the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency, which provides testing for American Olympic athletes, hailed the case as a step toward "removing drug cheats from sport."
 
"We fully expect that developments in the U.S. attorney's proceedings and our ongoing investigation will lead to the initiation of more doping cases against athletes and others," Madden said.

A parade of top athletes, ranging from Bonds to Olympic track star Marion Jones to boxer Shane Mosley, appeared before the grand jury probing BALCO and Anderson from late October to mid-December.

Sports leagues have struggled to keep up with the rising use of performance-enhancing drugs and ways of masking them as athletes continue to look for quick ways to gain a competitive advantage.

Baseball players have gotten noticeably larger in recent years and home runs have surged.

Bonds and other top athletes, such as Raiders linebacker Bill Romanowski, have been boosters of Conte and BALCO. Bonds has been a client since before the 2001 season, when he hit a record 73 home runs.

Bonds has been working for years with Anderson, a boyhood friend. Bonds has vehemently denied taking anything illegal.

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